Design and application of learning environments based on integrative problems

This work reports on the results obtained from the application of learning environments on the basis of one integrative problem and a series of other smaller problems that limit the contents to be investigated and learned by the students. This methodology, which is a variation to traditional problem-based learning approaches, is here illustrated in terms of its application in an engineering economics course, a subject that is taught in most engineering programs. The purpose of this methodology is to improve students’ learning, which is measured through the students’ academic performance and their learning strategies, and to characterise them as a function of these variables. The results obtained after the systematic application of this methodology are positive. The surveyed students showed significant changes in the examined variables as well as in their satisfaction and motivation level, and in their commitment to learning.     

Re-engagement with education over the life course: motivations and barriers

ABSTRACT

As the Australian labour market restructures and the pace of technological advances quickens, reskilling and up-skilling are now required for sustained employability. Thus, many adults embark on further study after spending a period of time in the workforce. To examine the reasons for re-engaging, and for not re-engaging with education during adulthood, we conduct analysis of longitudinal data collected from a cohort of people who completed school in 1991. The majority of the participants completed an educational qualification between 25 and 44 years and were thus, lifelong learners. Understanding the patterns of re-engagement with education and the reasons why some people choose to re-engage whereas others do not contributes to current policy debates about how education prepares Australians for life.     

“Mathematical knowledge for teaching”: adapting U.S. measures for use in Ireland

This article describes a study in which measures of mathematical knowledge for teaching developed in the United States were adapted to measure mathematical knowledge for teaching in Ireland. When adapting the measures it was not assumed that the mathematical knowledge used by Irish and U.S. teachers is the same. Instead psychometric and interview-based methods were used to determine a correspondence between the constructs being measured, and ensure the integrity of item performance in the Irish context. The study found overlap between the knowledge that is used to teach in both Ireland and the United States, and that the items tapped into this knowledge. However, specific findings confirm the usefulness of conducting extensive checks on the validity of items used in cross-national contexts. The process of adaptation is described to provide guidance for others interested in using the items to measure mathematical knowledge for teaching outside the United States. The process also enabled the authors to raise questions about the assumptions that lie behind the practice-based construct of mathematical knowledge for teaching.

Patterns of theory use in qualitative research in higher education studies in Latin America: a geopolitical interpretation

The relationship between theory and qualitative research has been extensively examined in the literature and has emerged as a problematic matter. This debate has been driven forward mainly in Anglo-Saxon countries and has done scant justice to an understanding of these issues in regions of the South. This paper addresses this matter by drawing on a geopolitical perspective. The study here provides an analysis of 24 papers by Latin-American researchers in higher education, as included in the Web of Science between 2006 and 2015. Theories in Latin America are mainly produced in the North and exhibit two patterns: (i) critical perspectives are used to address local problems – ‘epistemic problematization’; and (ii) a nuancing of Northern theories so as to contextualize them – ‘epistemic nuancing’. Suggestions are also made for a new configuration of knowledge production in higher education studies – a model of knowledge from and for the South.     

Nutritional intake in soccer players of different ages

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the dietary practices of soccer players of different ages. The diets of the members of four soccer teams (mean ages of 14.0, 15.0, 16.6 and 20.9 years, respectively) were examined. Our results show that the caloric intake per kilogram of body mass was significantly higher among the youngest players when compared with the adult players (P < 0.05). The contribution of carbohydrates to total energy intake was lower than that recommended for athletes. This contribution decreased with age from 47.4% of total energy intake for the 14-year-olds to 44.6% for the adult players. No significant differences in protein or total fat intake were detected among the teams examined. Overall, our results show that the nutritional intake of the soccer players was not optimal, and that this intake was poorer among the adult players than among the adolescents. On the basis of our results, we recommended that nutritional education should be given to soccer players at an early age and should continue throughout adolescence, not only with a view to improving performance but also to promoting more healthy dietary practices in the long term.     

The Birth of Particle Physics In Spain

Experimental high-energy and nuclear physics was created in Spain thanks to Joaquín Catalá de Alemany, who founded the Institute of Corpuscular Physics (IFIC) at the University of Valencia in 1950. The physics of photographic emulsions, cheap and easy to manipulate, were well adapted to the depressed situation in Spain following the Civil War. This essay describes how, using these techniques, Catalá de Alemany created a group, established links with international laboratories, and fostered a tradition that continues today.     

Distinctiveness of Public Radio in the Age of Digitization

This article examines the distinctiveness of the public broadcaster offer in the roll-out of digital terrestrial radio across 25 European markets. Distinctiveness was measured through the number of services and the diversity of genres provided by the same broadcaster on analogue-only, simulcast and digital-only stations. The results illustrate which public broadcasters have made an effort to provide exclusive digital services and which genres are being preferred in digital. As a whole, the research provides useful insights into the role of public media as drivers of digital radio and technological innovation.     

Scholarly management research in Spanish language: A bibliometric analysis (2000–2010)

In this article, the authors analyze the characteristics of the vernacular management literature in Spanish-speaking countries and examine what factors can explain the differences observed in the production of these countries. The results indicate that management research has gained ground in the last decade, as revealed by the apparition of new journals and the number of articles published. The article also shows that Spain has a different profile of published articles than that of the other countries, as its production is mostly composed of empirical-quantitative articles. Finally, a negative binomial regression model suggests that the countries' scientific output is positively associated with their level of economic development and the size of their economies.